


Curiosity

by MaskedDoll



Category: Persona 5
Genre: First Meetings, M/M, Nervous goro, Silent protag, Tag As I Go
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-07-18
Updated: 2018-07-19
Packaged: 2019-06-12 08:48:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,916
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15336219
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MaskedDoll/pseuds/MaskedDoll
Summary: A meeting between you and I and how it could have differed - a novel by Akechi Goro ace detective





	1. Prologue - Magnolia

Magnolia - June 9th

There the detective saw him. The very first meeting with a man clad with black from head to toe, mirthful eyes underneath a practiced face.

Blooming.

The question was: what did the detective think of this man whose face was almost too composed to be that of a high school student? He wasn't sure, he wasn't at all too sure about this man who gave him a relaxed, yet guarded, stare. Oh. He was going to have fun with this one wasn't he?

A single smirk was framed on his face for a single second before his faked smile.

"Pancakes do sound nice. I'm a bit famished myself after all this recording."

A pause by the other boy. The stares of his companions also gave him a small chill to his chest. Was this wrong perhaps? Maybe he misheard? Should he add on to his embarrassment? A moment of silence before speaking once more:

"O-oh? Perhaps I misheard? Well, I don't have time for idle chatter, I must continue with my schedule. Well then another time, if fate allows it, we will meet again."

Pause.

Blink.

"Enjoy those pancakes."

A single nervous smile rose, before the detective ran off with slight embarrassment. His day was just not going well at all, now was it. How much more of a fool did he have to make himself out to be towards others?

Disgusting.

The words rang out in his mind, haunting it for the remainder of the day. 

God if you truly exist, don’t ever allow that man to ever meet me anymore.

 

Magnolia June 10th

God was a fake and did not hear the words of this pitiful sinner. There he was again, this boy, a black mop of hair adorned with messy curls. Hidden eyes by frames clearly too big for his face, with a messy yet clean uniform look. His presence was going to haunt him for life, wasn't it? God, how cruel of you.

"What do you think of the phantom thieves?"

The question lingered in the air, but the boy didn't answer, his eyes still hidden by those glasses. The detective was too far to see his eyes underneath them, much less the expression the boy was wearing. Was he smirking? He clearly should not be smirking at such a question.

"Justice."

His voice rang in his ears. Oh, what a nice voice. It sounds comforting. A little too comforting. A fake smile was positioned to his face once more. Was that all he was going to say? The crowd murmured. The detective could only hear so much but clearly this man was popular. 

A single word:

"Criminal."

He didn't understand. Ah. Did they hate this man? He seemed to be handsome from the last time he saw him up close, but it seemed his companions that were around him last time were not what one would call "school standard". He didn't remember much about them, simply black scribbles on his memory. He should have paid more attention.

"Is that all?" the nervous woman questioned him. It brought him back to his senses. Yes, was this all he was going to say after finally hearing this mystery man's voice? The boy looked back up to the caster. He seemed annoyed - did he not like speaking? Mentally, he took note of this for later if he ever did see him again. He was intrigued now, but wanted to forget his past blunder with him.

"Ah, hmmn." A moment, he spoke once more. "Well, I think they are justice itself. How can society rely on corrupted adults who only take from the weak when it’s convenient to them?" Another pause and then an interruption.

"Oh? How so? The very notion of them is also breaking the law laid out by these so called corrupted adults." A challenging smile was placed on the detective’s lips. "At the very least, how do we know all the people in authority is, in fact, corrupted?" He hated playing the good cop in this. The boy’s words struck a nerve within him.

A side glance.

A smirk.

A shift.

"Hmmn, get back to me when you find out."

A smile.

Oh no, he's dangerous, way too dangerous.

“Well then, let's continue with the show.”

He had to get at least his name. Just a name would be fine -- maybe this cruel god would allow him to meet that boy once more. He would just have to wait for this whole recording session to end.

He seemed to have gotten his wish. There he was, the boy clad in black, slumped on the wall, avoiding all contact from his peers. This was his chance! No -- wait -- it shouldn’t be. He shouldn’t be excited, but who would fight with him knowing he was even a bit as popular as he described himself. 

Closer and closer.

“Ah, that was the first time someone was so bold to comment back at me. After all, you can’t have advancement without both thesis and antithesis.” He felt like he was speaking frantically, but he's had his practice. He knew how to keep his voice even. He couldn’t show any hint of excitement. A blank stare was given in return. “Oh? Sorry.” A chuckle. “What I meant wa - ”

“You found it fun right.”

Eyes were peering up at him. They looked tired today, a bit different from before. Maybe this boy didn't get enough rest that night. Fumbling and a shift. His bag was moving? The man simply pat it before looking back at him. The detective cleared his throat.

“Well no, I found it meaningful. After all, not many speak their mind around me -- mostly do it for self gain.” He paused, before speaking once more. “After all, the young can’t speak their minds as the adults tend to speak for them.” He felt his mask crack for a second -- should he have not spoke those words? A slight on his part, but the man seemed to not like adults from what he spoke of earlier.

The boy stood up straight. Oh, he was shorter than he imagined. Another smirk.

“Kurusu,” A pause and a blink, “Kurusu Akira.”

Oh -- his name -- this was his name? It fit him very well.

“Ake-”  
“I know, you don't have to repeat yourself.”

Why was he acting cold? They both seemed the same age, shouldn't they have more of a standing with each other? He seemed to play along earlier, why was now any different from before? As if reading his mind, Akira Kurusu spoke once more.

“I played along with the adults.” His eyes were almost slits as he gave a smirk. 

Yes, this man was clearly dangerous.

Akira turned to leave. Wait, no, he wasn't done speaking to him. He tried to reach out but stopped. He shouldn’t touch him, those thoughts ran through his mind almost immediately. Why was there this sense of dread to touch him?

A flinch.

Oh was this the reason? Akechi looked up. A grim expression was on Akira’s face as he glared up at him before relaxing once more.

“My apologies, but I just hope I could speak more to you? You seem like an interesting person. I would love to learn more of your thoughts and apply them to my theories” He sounded a little too over excited, yeah, he was over excited. The boy raised his eyebrow in question, placing both hands in his pockets. His eyelashes fluttered as he blinked, then closing them. Releasing a sigh his bag fumbles some more. 

A voice?

A tsk.

Blink.

Shift.

“Sure…” He began to move again, walking away from Akechi, before pausing and turning back to look at him. “If the situation allows us to, may we speak again, Mr. Ace Detective. After all I did give you an invitation.”

An invitation? When? When could he possibly have given him an invitation to speak with him? Like clockwork, Akechi began to think. Click, ding, there it was -- the conversation. 

‘Get back to me when you find out.’

Dangerous, dangerous.


	2. Magnolia

June 26th Magnolia

The bell chimed as Akechi entered the cafe. He surveyed it -- the interior was rather odd, but held a very antique feeling to it. Early this afternoon, his co worker had suggested to him a small hole in the wall cafe, LeBlanc. She couldn’t make it due to drowning in more work than she really needed, but that was a story for another time. Slowly, he made his way to a seat.

Black curls.

He froze, eyes widening for a fraction of a second before he was broken from his trance.

“What can I get for you?” a gruff voice spoke. Akechi turned to the new voice. Its user was a very well dressed older male. Akechi summed him up as an old man who does what he wants on a whim, what with his posture and all. A pause in the young detective, he could go for his usual sugary drink, but this place was too classy for a coffee chain sugar concoction.

“The house blend sounds lovely.” He smiled as he placed his suitcase to the ground, finally taking his seat. “This place is rather old and retro, it’s a lot nicer than most can expect.”

“So they say.”

Ah, that voice again, it was his. Akechi looked up and there he was, Akira Kurusu, still bearing his all black attire and messy black curls. His eyes peered down at him in menacing tired slits, did he always have to glare at him when they speak? A coffee was placed in front of him to break the stare.

“House blend.”

Akira’s hands retracted as he finished placing the cup down. He slowly began to shift away from the view of the detective. No, Akechi clearly wanted to speak more, don’t leave. He cleared his throat in order to gain the other’s attention.

“I wasn't aware of you liking coffee. I suppose that explains the scent of coffee from last time.” Akechi smiled, hoping it would spark his interest. An awkward glance and a fiddle of his hair. Was this a nervous habit? Cute. No wait, wrong word, noted was what he meant to think.

“No.” Akira paused. “No, not really. I just decided to learn.”

How many blunders was he going to make with this man? God, you are cruel. The owner was watching Akira all too closely.

Curious.

A smile.

A simple clasp of the hands.

A tilt of the head.

A snakes smile.

Disturbing.

“I’m intrigued to hear more of the Phantom Thieves from you. You seemed to be a strong supporter of them. They did originate at Shujin, correct?” Akechi inquired. 

Each word spilling from his mouth seemed like a vat of poison. Trap by trap was laid out -- maybe Akira wasn't as much of a fool and realized this. A grunt was heard and Akira turned to look where it came from. Akechi followed suit.

“Is he doing anything shady? If so, get out, we don't want trouble.” He took a cigarette out of his case and slowly brought it to his mouth. “If not, just sit and enjoy the coffee.”

Akira’s eyes widened for a second as he shifted a bit, hair falling over his eyes as he looked to the counter. A small smile appeared on his face as he moved to cover it. Same habit, same pace. Why was he so happy?

Irritating.

A sip of coffee.

“Hmmn, not bad. Could use some work, boss.” he smiled.  
“Oh, I made that.” His smile was not gone, a slight tint to his face as he looked to the side.

Blink.

Freeze.

Another blunder, this now makes 3 times. Wonderful way to make a great impression on him. 

“Ah, well. I see you do have much to work on. I’m sure you’ll come to learn to love this kind of drink.” A sip. It really was bad. 

A deep sigh.

A shift.

Escape.

He seemed to have missed out on speaking to him more as Akira went back to washing dishes. He would have to finish his drink for now, in hopes of being able to speak to him once more. Something struck him as odd -- why wasn't he speaking much? It’s not like he didn't know how to speak. He just seemed reluctant to, and the way the boss spoke...how Akira gave a small smile.

Disgusting.

He felt irritated for some reason, the feeling clawing away at his chest as he tried to remain calm. It was easy to, after all, he has to remain calm and collected all the time, always smiling always happy. A bore to him, if anything, but he would have to maintain this happy facade regardless. That's how the world of the adults worked. The mug clinked as he set it down, reaching into his pockets to fish out the change for the drink. He carefully placed it in front of him, and slowly began to stand up once more. This second meeting did not go as how he had planned. Kurusu was guarded -- even more so with people around him. He could almost feel his eye twitched -- remember, practiced face. He glanced at Akira, who was washing dishes at his own pace. Maybe next time he would get more words out of him.

“Well then,” he began, looking at the boss. “I’ll come again for some more coffee. I would love to see your pupil improve every time I visit.”

And again, a quick escape.

A huff.

Words.

“I’ve never heard you speak so much to a person your age.”

A murmur.

The chime of a bell.

‘So he's usually silent.’ Another note to take of this entity known as Akira Kurusu. He’ll have to come by again.

July 11th - Magnolia

The heat was starting to pick up more and more and the subway was no different. Hot bodies packed next to each other, all trying to get to their next destination. No matter how much he adjusted his collared shirt or his hair, it would always remain hot. His gloves weren't helping but he would rather die of heat than have to remove them and experience touching anything around him. Just as he began to fan himself a tail was swatted into his face

“Woah!” He flinched as it slapped him and immediately sneezed after. “Excuse me, but animals aren’t allowed in the sta-”

Messy curls.

“Ah…” Akira’s eyes widened in surprise. Oh, what a curious look. He's never seen him lose his composure like this. This was their third meeting and it was already sort of going very well. Akechi decided he liked this -- he very much liked this.

“Oh, Kurusu.” He smiled. “I promise to keep your animal smuggling silent if you kindly turn yourself in.”

A snort.

Eyes widened.

A blush.

“I think the point of being a criminal is not getting caught.”

Oh no, this was dangerous, this was truly very dangerous. He didn't think Akira could even make a face like this. Was it even possible? This terrible feeling froze its way into his chest. He didn’t like this.

Disgusting.

“Oh, I didn't expect my cat to catch your tongue so easily.” Akira’s eyes bore into Akechi’s nervous blush. He was clearly smirking at his expression, wasn’t he? Of course he was. Akechi already summed up Akira’s personality as a man who would bring a person down into their own personal hell as a joke. He was most certainly going to play his game. He wanted to be the victor after all. ‘Remain calm,’ was his mantra to himself.

“No, I very much still have it. I would be a bad detective if I allowed a thief to steal from me.”

Akira tilted his head and moved his hand to cover a bit of his face, almost as if hiding his grin. He still held his gaze towards Akechi for a few moments before tearing his eyes away.

“Arsene lupin is a great example of a man who could steal from a detective there are many detective who get articles stolen from them” a smirk “But I have stolen your voice”  
He was right he was speaking more and more as akechi was stumbling with words. He was a t.v. personality he was a man who always had the last words with criminals. How was this raven clad man able to throw him off so easily with just his voice? No he was going to say the last word he was going to.

“Subway”

What? Subway? What did he mean? Mouth open agape ready to speak.

“Excuse me?” was all akechi could manage. Was that all Akira was going to say? When Akechi went back to retaliate a sudden chime and the announcer's voice calmly spoke on the intercom stating his ride was about to depart.

“You’re late.” 

Akira waved his hand as he began to walk into the crowd slowly. Gone? Just like that? Correction: Akechi Goro did not have a grasp on how Kurusu Akira worked, and he was going to get down to the bottom of this. God, was it considered stalking if you suspected a person for something other than breaking the laws? Was this normal? It was now, to ease his anxiety over this man. Again the intercom blared. He, indeed, would be late at this rate, and a man who had a way with words had cursed him.


End file.
